Another look at Martí’s journalistic work

HAVANA, Cuba, Jan 24 (ACN) Many publications refer to José Martí's journalistic work in the newspaper Patria as the peak of his experience in the written press, but little is said about his stint as a correspondent through the section Constante, a sample of his more brief and direct style, which he practiced in New York in the late 1881 and the early 1882 for the Venezuelan daily La Opinión Nacional.

Doctor of Historical Sciences Pedro Pablo Rodriguez, a researcher with the Center for Martí's Studies, said that Constante is one of Martí's most direct journalistic works, one in which the structure of the message to be conveyed is paramount.

The section is made up of a number of short notes and sources consulted and translated by Martí himself. In terms of length, these notes differ from his long and famous North American Scenes and the revolutionary speeches published in Patria.

In the dossier José Martí en La Opinión Nacional: a 140 años de su labor periodística en Venezuela, Venezuelan professor Wolfgang R. Vicent Vielma reports that "On November 4, 1881, the first Sección Constante was issued with Martí’s critical views on politics, literature, travel, curiosities, fashion and city life in New York".

In June 1882, Martí finished his work as correspondent for La Opinión Nacional, as well as for Constante, which had a major influence on the Apostle’s journalistic work.

In a letter to his friend Diego Jugo Ramírez, dated July 28, 1882, Martí wrote: "It hurts so much to drown that voice... What a pleasure it was for me, even though it was hard work, to write all those things to Caracas! (…) It really hurts to have lost a beloved tribune."

MSc. Randy Saborit, professor of the subject Journalism of José Martí at the School of Communication of the University of Havana, points out that Constante allowed Martí to practice as a correspondent for purposes of giving information. At the same time, the Apostle was also a contributor to other newspapers such as Argentina’s La Nación and Mexico’s El Partido Liberal, but in those cases with lengthy chronicles, unlike the Section’s reduced space.

All this helped Martí to develop at a later date his extensive writings for North American Scenes and his chronicles for Patria’s section En casa, the professor remarked.